Bananas, Banana Bread

Sorry, sorry, sorry!

Gosh I've been saying that a lot latly with regards to the blog.

It's just trying to juggle a job, a mad, but super fun 3 year old (he went three the other week crazy hey) so time just got away from me a bit.

But I'm off to Disney world in 3 days so I plan to get loads of blogging material might even write a few when I'm over there on my Blogger app. (Although will sort out the photo when I'm back as the app, well I can't work out on the app, how to get the pics right)

Any who before all the Disney madness I thought I add a cooking blog, blog lol.

A few weeks back at my inlaws I made them a lovely Banana loaf with the help of my glamours assistant my husband.

So what you will need is 

3 Bananas

140g Flour

140g Butter

140g sugar

1 tsp Baking Powder 

2 eggs 

First weigh out the sugar

and the Butter 

And cream them together

Then weight the flower 

And whisk two eggs

Fold in the flower and the eggs

Then add a 1tps of Baking Powder

Then take your 3 bananas

Chop them 

Then smush (my technical term for the below) lol  them together a much as you can

Then fold this into the mixture 

After that your mixture should be ready for the oven

Then spoon it into a loaf team 

and cook in a 180 degree oven for around 50 minutes.

And Enjoy it with some fizz.

Right so hope you make enjoy it and love it!!

Also keep an eye out in the coming week for all my Disney posts so excited!!!

Vlogging the blogging

So I thought I shake it up a bit...

I've given Vlogging a go this week. We went to  Leeds Castle in Kent to watch the Medieval Jousting.

Although when I say vlog, it's more of a video but I am trying new things and will hopefully be making more of this with a bit more talking from now on (Also apologies for the sound a the start it was a super windy day). 

Will be back next week with a proper blog apologies been hectic what with a new job and not having internet at home don't ask but now I have super fast broadband so will be able to blog quite happily from now on.

A pox on my house - (but hey cocktails)

Firstly the good news look at what my Son did a Nursery the first thing he's made so proud as he following in him mum's foot steps today it chocolate rice krispy cakes tomorrow Cake boss lol..

Well that is before he got sick, so it was my birthday in the past week I turned 36 whoop whoop actually don't mind getting older my 30's so far have been fantastic and far less stressful and unsure like my 20's were. Also because I'm embarrassed me, especially my dyslexia and dyspraxia. I find I am finally comfortable in my own skin. 

So I had a big party plan with loads of treats and fun things I was going to cook and share with my chums but the morning of the start of the festivities my son awoke with the Chicken Pox (right on my birthday, a gift I really didn't want). The poor lad was not well and I needed to cancel on everyone, two days of plans right out the window and all my cooking idea too.

Slightly worried though as the presents I did get (and please remember that most of my friends gift didn't arrive as they were bring them to the party) I still managed to amass a load of drink - Think I have an unfair reputation and yes I know my blogs are full of drinking and yes I'm going to be talking about drinking below. That's not the point and I think this characterization is wholly unfounded :P 

So on my birthday it was just My husband as me and the little one spent most of the day in bed the only highlight was Hotel Chocolat and Champagne 

Oh and I did get a cake a super cute Pug cake so cute from Asda - but between twopeople  a 16 person cake is just too much lol.

There were some highlights I manged to get back to the Artesain Bar at the Langham Hotel in London and have another one of their cocktails that's 2 now out of a list of around 20 and oh yes I will do the whole list but they are a bit pricey so will have to spread them out.

This time I had their utterly fabulous "How Not To Be Seen" it was Tots Amaz (Sorry was somewhere posh so it just came out) lol  - it was made of Martell Cordon Bleu, Caju, Sauvignon Blanc, Agave.

Goes down very well and was just as nice as the last cocktail I had there "Suspended in Time" but it was less dramatic, think next time I need one of their more showy cocktails.


Oh and I was taken by a colleague at work to Wahaca as it was only a few of us didn't want to spend it taking loads of food picks but I did take a photo of the Passion Fruit Mojito we had.

That is one smooth and refreshing cocktail, it tastes just like a fab fruit punch which I can see being dangerous as they go down far to easily but as I was only on lunch I only had one. (But will go back when I can and have more than one lol).

The other good thing this week in between trying to get a 2 and a half year old not to scratch his poxs - Which is just so much fun and who said parenting was glamorous.

The sun has finally arrived in the UK it is hot and sunny and wonderful and great and fantastic (oh you can tell I so over the cold can't you :) )

so I managed to eat outside and look my food dishes even came with a hidden Mickey.

Oh and you have to have cocktails in the sun it a rule (That I've just made up) Well I did have to use all the champagne I was gifted so, some Buck's Fizz (Mamosa) went down really well with a mini BBQ.

We just had a few nibbles some steak, plain for Hubby and then some chilli seasoned stake hot sauce and spicy seasoning for me.

so nice to eat alfresco and I really do think food is improved by your surrounding so eating some nice steak and corn in the sun taste far better than if you where eating it inside in the cold and with it raining outside.

Also with the left over steak in the evening I fried it with some mushroom and parsley to add to a salad.

I should have taken a picture of the salad but got distracted and then I was over half way through when I remembered and it look a mess. (bad food blogger, bad).

So hopefully next week the cursed Poxs should be lifted from our house (Sorry it's Shakespeare celebration over her in the UK so I'm challenging the Bard). And after all the trauma lately with one thing and other back to my old self (and maybe even a slight tan self if the weather holds).

Lamb-ie and Stuffed

So yay I'm back.

The trials and tribulation that have happened over the last few weeks seem to have calmed down and life is back to normal (Well normal for me lol).

I've had a busy, busy, busy week. First big event went to the Hippodrome in Leicester Square for my friends 40th Birthday! She'd hire out the Heliot lounge for fun an frolics.

It was a really nice venue, staff was lovely and it was great to get out into town (Hubby had the little one)

As I was having a night off  I had a cheeky glass of Fizz:

Which was noms, I then tried their Margaritas, and regular readers will know I do like my Margaritas. Not to toot my own horn (toot toot) but I do make a mean Margarita (V. Strong)but  have to say it wasn't the best which was a shame.

So I went back to the fizz for the rest of the night my poor head lol.

As due to the Easter holiday we had some family time we decided to have a  meal out at the Farmhouse in West Malling

I had their lovely Steak Panini which was very tasty and the steak was cooked really well and no chewy at all. You can tell it was good a the little one wolfed it down.

My Husband had the burger which looked lovely,

But we decided couldn't have been as nice as the steak as the little one didn't like the bite, he was given, and went back to the steak.

We even had some amazing Crisps "Corkers" yummy really need them to start doing them in big bags in my local supermarket as these would go great with dips and a cheeky glass of wine while having a comfy night in, in front of the TV.

I did some of my own cooking too, well I though I might as it is supposed to be a cooking blog lol.

I did a Roast Dinner for my mum as she's well on her road to recovery. Also Asda had super duper bargains the lamb was £4 per KG and the bags of veg were £0.29p each OMG whole dinner didn't cost that much over a £10 and that was with dessert.

For such a good price it was a huge leg of lamb as my glamorous assistant demonstrated, and remember he's 6"4"

Roast dinners are really simple to do but appear complicated so you get lots of praise which is nice. The only thing you really need a handle on, to have a great roast, is timing. If you get that right everything else fits into place.

So for the meat I heated up some olive oil in a roasting dish (in a pre-heated 180 Degrees) for about 5 minutes

I then gave it a baste and quickly scored the top before liberally adding Rosemary.

I then covered it in foil and put in the oven for half the cooking time 25min per 500g (17 oz) with an extra 25min on top

So after half way I whipped off the foil basted again and then I added some par boiled new potatoes and Parsnips to the roasting dish then back in the oven for the rest of the time.

What you end up with is golden lamb-ie goodness which is so so so flavorful.

Add some veg and a couple of Yorkshire puddings (I know they are supposed to go with beef but I love them with all roasts and it my blog so there).

What you are left with is a fantastic roast dinner for all the family (The little one ate all of his and he is my gold seal of approval for all my cooking now lol).

Also in the week we went out for a lovely brunch at Bills I opted for the Vegetarian option which was toast one topped with hummus and the other with guacamole. It also came with two poached eggs, mushroom and tomatoes.

Great combination of flavors especially with the sweet chilli sauce applied all over the dish. There was nothing left just one satisfied me.

I have had a lot of food this week but I have been burning it off too we been doing so DIY to the new house have a lovely new spare room.

and a beautiful new floor, oh well I can't really take any credit for the floor as we got that from the wonderful people at Carpet4less I like to give credit when it's due and these guys were great.

Really good prices and really professional fitting, couldn't be more impressed with the service.

Last cooking dish I want to share with you is a lower fat one than the roast dinner.

I baked a potato

Once it was a bit cooler I scooped out the inside.

and place the that into a bowl.

I filled the bottom of the empty potato skins with low fat cream cheese

I then grilled some bacon (with the fat trimmed off) and some Mushrooms

chopped them up and added them to the potato mix.

I then put this mix back into the potato shells and grilled for about 6 minutes.

Then add some low fat cheese and place back under the grill till it melted and serve with a lovely salad and Voila a lovely and not overly fattening snack.

So glad to be back and glad to be cooking and hopefully over the coming week we can have some fab food and some fab times. 

Moving madness and vegetable

So we moving tomorrow, arrrghhh!! Okay I am calm.

So haven't been doing much cooking - anything I can throw in the oven between packing boxes has been the order of the day. 

The only thing I really did was try to make some vegetables fun as I am, in vain, still trying to diet.

So I took a potato, a sweet potato , carrots and swede.

Chopped the up and cooked them for about 20/25 minutes till they were really soft.

Then I pureed them all together.

Took a pre-spray oil baking tray (with baking parchment) and scoped out balls of the vegetable mix.

Put them in the oven for 15 minutes. 

I then took them out and added a small sprinkling of low fat cheese and put them back in for another 10 minutes.

What you end up with is some lovely veggie cheesy yumminess.

Which are tasty and healthy at the same time and I think make veggie a bit more interesting.

Although now thinking about it you could add the cheese into the middle of the veg balls so when you cut in you got melty cheese. Hmmm interesting think I might need to do that next time.